Guerrero, a Cuban 5 revolutionary, paintings exhibit

The Minnesota Cuba Committee and Obsidian Arts are sponsoring a month-long exhibit featuring the paintings of Antonio Guerrero, one of five Cuban revolutionaries locked up in U.S. prisons on what his supporters claim are “trumped-up” charges.

The opening reception takes place on Sept. 12, from 6 - 8 p.m. at the Pillsbury House in south Minneapolis, 3501 Chicago Ave. S.

The art show, “I Will Die the Way I Lived,” features 15 watercolor paintings by Guerrero, who learned to paint and draw from fellow inmates. “After finishing the painting number 15, I made the decision to stop in this number, because it coincides with the number of years that soon will mark our captivity,” wrote Guerrero in his introductory note to the exhibit.

Most of the prisoners’ time has been in maximum-security prisons, including many months in solitary confinement.

Also at the Pillsbury House, “The Cuban Wives,” an award-winning documentary about the families of the Cuban Five, will be shown on Sept. 19 at 7 p.m.

Guerrero, along with four other Cubans – Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Fernando González, and René González – were convicted on charges that included conspiracy to commit espionage and, in the case of Hernández, conspiracy to commit murder, and received long prison sentences. René Gonzalez was released in 2011 after serving more than 13 years in prison.

Known internationally as the Cuban Five, these revolutionaries were arrested in September 1998 in Miami by the FBI. The five had been gathering information on right-wing Cuban exile groups in Florida that have a long history of carrying out violent acts against the Cuban Revolution. Their assignment was to keep the Cuban government informed of these deadly operations in order to prevent as many as possible from coming to fruition. Over five decades, more than 3,500 Cubans have been killed and 2,100 injured in attacks – most originating from U.S. soil.

Guerrero was sentenced to life in prison plus 10 years. In 2009, his sentence was reduced to 21 years and 10 months after an appeals court ruled that the sentences of three of the five – Guerrero, Labañino, and Fernando González – were excessive. The reduction in the sentences was seen as an acknowledgement of the pressure put on the U.S. government from the worldwide campaign demanding freedom for the Cuban Five.

More than 350 committees in 114 countries, hundreds of political organizations, and thousands of individuals around the world are working to win the freedom of the Cuban Five. Support ranges from the National Conference of Black Lawyers to the National Council of Churches, actors such as Danny Glover and Harry Belafonte, 12 Nobel Prize laureates, several trade unions and many others.

Also at the Pillsbury House, “The Cuban Wives,” an award-winning documentary about the families of the Cuban Five will be shown on September 19 at 7 PM.

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